ESPN Rankings

[Fibroso]

WELTERWEIGHTS (147 POUNDS)

1. Juan Manuel Marquez (55-6-1)

http://sports.espn.go.com/photo/2012/0725/box_g_manuelmarquez_65.jpg

Marquez was 0-2-1 in three controversial decisions against Manny Pacquiao heading into their fourth fight on Dec. 8, and both vowed to go for a definitive result. In one of the best fights in recent years, Marquez and Pacquiao traded knockdowns before Marquez ended the slugfest with one massive right hand at the end of the sixth round to knock Pacquiao out cold and claim his greatest victory. A fifth fight will probably take place in 2013.
Next: TBA.




2. Timothy Bradley Jr. (29-0)

Bradley moved up to welterweight for a shot at titleholder and superstar Manny Pacquiao on June 9. Even though Bradley fought his rear end off and gave it everything he had, he was soundly beaten by Pacquiao -- at least that is what most everybody on Earth thought except for judges Duane Ford and C.J. Ross, whose horrific scorecards gave Bradley the win via split decision. It will go down as one of the most controversial decisions in boxing history. Bradley hoped to face Pacquiao again but was passed over, leaving him to find some other dance partner for his return, although that intended Dec. 15 fight is off after he refused a $2.3 million purse for an HBO main event against Lamont Peterson in a rematch of a fight Bradley won easily.
Next: TBA.




3. Manny Pacquiao (54-5-2)

Pacquiao was 2-0-1 against Juan Manuel Marquez entering their fourth meeting on Dec. 8. Despite Pacquiao's series lead, the first three fights had been incredibly close and could have gone either way, but Marquez finally scored a definitive victory, scoring the obvious knockout of the year as he put Pacquiao to sleep with a gargantuan right hand with one second left in the sixth round. Pacquiao vowed after the fight that he would return, meaning you can all but bet on a fifth showdown between the great rivals.
Next: TBA.




4. Robert Guerrero (31-1-1)

"The Ghost" has been quite impressive in his two welterweight fights since moving up in weight following a 15-month layoff because of shoulder surgery. First, he outpointed quality contender Selcuk Aydin in an exciting slugfest to claim an interim belt in July. On Nov. 24, Guerrero dropped former two-time titleholder Andre Berto twice and beat him up to win a clear unanimous decision in a tremendous action fight. The win probably puts Guerrero in the pole position to land a spring fight with Floyd Mayweather Jr.
Next: TBA.




5. Paulie Malignaggi (32-4)

Malignaggi, a former junior welterweight titlist, won a welterweight belt in impressive fashion by going to Ukraine and dismantling Vyacheslav Senchenko for a ninth-round TKO on April 29 in what might have been the best performance of his career. Malignaggi made his first defense on Oct. 20 in his hometown of Brooklyn, N.Y., and won a debatable split decision against Mexico's Pablo Cesar Cano, who dropped Malignaggi hard in the 11th round. A seven-figure rematch with Ricky Hatton went down the tubes when Senchenko knocked Hatton out in the ninth round Nov. 24, with Malignaggi at ringside.
Next: TBA.




6. Devon Alexander (24-1)

Although his Oct. 20 fight was horrible and had zero action, Alexander won a world title in his second weight class as he rolled to a unanimous decision victory against Randall Bailey -- who fought as if he were sleepwalking -- on the big debut card at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N.Y. For his first defense, Alexander is due to headline a Showtime card against tough mandatory challenger Kell Brook (29-0) of England. The fight will take place at the Nokia Theater in Los Angeles.
Next: Jan. 19 vs. Brook.




7. Andre Berto (28-2)

Although Berto tested positive for steroids and had his June 23 rematch with Victor Ortiz canceled, he was granted a license in California and returned to headline an HBO show against interim titlist Robert Guerrero on Nov. 24. It was a brutal and exciting fight, but Berto was dropped twice -- in the first and second rounds -- and soundly outpointed in a tough, tough loss.
Next: TBA.




8. Jan Zaveck (32-2)

Slovenia's Zaveck, who lost his belt to Andre Berto in 2011, was due to face Sherzodbek Alimanjov on the undercard of the Aug. 25 Robert Stieglitz-Arthur Abraham super middleweight title bout in Germany. However, Zaveck suffered an elbow injury in training. He needs surgery and his timetable to return is unclear.
Next: TBA.




9. Kell Brook (29-0)

Fighting at home in Sheffield, England, Brook destroyed no-chin Hector Saldivia of Argentina on Oct. 20. Brook dropped Saldivia with an uppercut in the first round and then knocked him out with a jab in the third round. The victory makes Brook the mandatory challenger for newly crowned titlist Devon Alexander (24-1).
Next: Jan. 19 vs. Alexander.




10. Josesito Lopez (30-5) Lopez, the unheralded underdog, moved up in weight from junior welterweight to face former titlist Victor Ortiz on June 23 as a late substitute for steroid-busted Andre Berto. Lopez broke Ortiz's jaw in two places and forced him to retire on his stool after the ninth round of a terrific fight. Ortiz said he will pick up his option for a rematch, although he is sidelined for the time being because of the jaw injury. That opened the door for Lopez to accept a fight with junior middleweight titlist Saul "Canelo" Alvarez, so Lopez moved up yet another division and was blown out in five one-sided rounds on Sept. 15.
Next: TBA.

[Fibroso]

JUNIOR WELTERWEIGHTS (140 POUNDS)
1. Danny Garcia (25-0)

http://sports.espn.go.com/photo/2012/0716/sn_g_dagrcia_cr_65.jpg
Although Erik Morales failed multiple drug tests, his Oct. 20 fight with Garcia -- which opened the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N.Y., for boxing -- was allowed to go on and Garcia waxed the faded star, scoring a sensational one-punch, left-hook knockout in the fourth round. It is a clear knockout of the year candidate. Now it's on to Garcia's next defense, which will also be at the Barclays Center, against former titlist Zab Judah (42-7) in another Showtime main event.
Next: Feb. 9 vs. Judah.




2. Lucas Matthysse (32-2)

The big puncher from Argentina walked through some heavy shots to deliver his own big bombs in a thrilling fifth-round knockout of respected former two-division titlist Humberto Soto on June 23. Matthysse followed it up with an even more impressive victory on Sept. 8, when he hammered Olusegun Ajose into a 10th-round knockout to win a vacant interim title. Matthysse is simply one of the most exciting fighters in the sport and one of its best punchers. When he's fighting, you must watch, which you can do on Showtime when he faces Hank Lundy (22-2-1) on the Devon Alexander-Kell Brook undercard.
Next: Jan. 19 vs. Lundy.




3. Lamont Peterson (30-1-1)

Because Peterson tested positive for synthetic testosterone before the fight, his May 19 rematch with Amir Khan was canceled and Peterson was stripped of one of his belts. He was ordered to make a mandatory defense against former titlist Zab Judah, but when Judah declined to sign the contract by the deadline following the purse bid, Peterson was ordered to face the next leading available contender, former titlist Kendall Holt (28-5).
Next: TBA.




4. Amir Khan (26-3)

Looking to rebuild after an upset fourth-round knockout loss to Danny Garcia on July 14, Khan fired trainer Freddie Roach and replaced him with reigning trainer of the year Virgil Hunter, best known for his work with super middleweight champ Andre Ward. Khan's first fight with Hunter will come on Showtime -- he's defecting from HBO like most of Golden Boy's fighters -- against lightweight Carlos Molina (18-0-1), who is moving up for the opportunity.
Next: Dec. 15 vs. Molina.




5. Zab Judah (42-7)

On March 24, Judah looked good as he dominated Vernon Paris and stopped him in the ninth round of an elimination bout. The win made Judah the mandatory challenger for Lamont Peterson, but Judah wound up passing on the fight for a more lucrative opportunity to challenge unified titleholder Danny Garcia (25-0) in a fight that will headline a Showtime card. Judah, a former three-time 140-pound titlist, and Garcia's father and trainer, Angel Garcia, nearly came to blows in a near-riot at the kickoff news conference. Hopefully, the fight will live up to the violence they promised.
Next: Feb. 9 vs. Garcia.




6. Brandon Rios (31-0-1)

As Manny Pacquiao and Juan Manuel Marquez prepared to fight on Dec. 8, Rios was prominently mentioned as a likely opponent for the winner; he was coming off a sensational victory against Mike Alvarado in one of the year's best fights on Oct. 13. Rios was even ringside for the fight, but when Marquez knocked out Pacquiao, it set the stage for a probable fifth fight between them, leaving Rios looking for another dance partner.
Next: TBA.




7. Mike Alvarado (33-1)

Alvarado's April slugfest against Mauricio Herrera was a fight of the year frontrunner until what happened on Oct. 13. That is when Alvarado and Brandon Rios engaged in a toe-to-toe war that was an instant classic. Although Rios stopped Alvarado in the seventh round, Alvarado's career was elevated tremendously by the sensational battle. He'll take a break and then surely will be back in another high-profile fight.
Next: TBA.




8. Khabib Allakhverdiev (18-0)

Russia's Allakhverdiev, who owns wins against Kaizer Mabuza and Nate Campbell since late 2011, claimed a vacant title by winning a seventh-round technical split decision against former featherweight and junior lightweight titlist Joan Guzman on Nov. 30 in the main event that marked Bounce TV's first boxing event. Guzman was unable to continue after injuring his leg when he tripped (along with being partially pushed) to the canvas.
Next: TBA.




9. Olusegun Ajose (30-1)

Nigeria's Ajose put up a game and exciting effort against Lucas Matthysse in their Sept. 8 battle for a vacant interim belt, but Matthysse was too much. He battered Ajose, dropped him for the first time in his career and stopped him in the 10th round of an exciting fight.
Next: TBA.




10. Denis Shafikov (31-0-1) Shafikov, a Russian southpaw, rolled to a lopsided decision win against fringe contender Albert Mensah on Dec. 1 to move a step closer to a mandatory title shot.
Next: TBA.

[Fibroso]

JUNIOR MIDDLEWEIGHTS (154 POUNDS)
1. Floyd Mayweather Jr. (43-0)

http://espn.go.com/photo/2011/0914/box_g_mayweather12_65.jpg
Mayweather, a welterweight champion and the pound-for-pound king, moved up to junior middleweight and dethroned titlist Miguel Cotto via a competitive but clear decision on May 5 in the year's biggest fight. It was an outstanding battle, during which Cotto forced Mayweather to engage, but "Money" came out on top. Mayweather reported to jail on June 1 and was released Aug. 3, and he is now planning two fights in 2013 -- May 4 and Sept. 14. For the first fight, Mayweather likely will face interim welterweight titlist Robert Guerrero (31-1-1).
Next: May 4 vs. TBA.




2. Austin Trout (26-0)

In a career-defining fight (so far), Trout went to Miguel Cotto's house at Madison Square Garden on Dec. 1 and outboxed and outfought the Puerto Rican icon to pull the unanimous decision upset and retain his title for the third time. It was an excellent performance against an aging fighter. If you didn't know who Trout was before, you should now.
Next: TBA.




3. Saul "Canelo" Alvarez (41-0-1)

Maybe Alvarez should just stop going to fights to watch his future opponents. In June, he was ringside and watched his September opponent, Victor Ortiz, get stopped in a tune-up fight. So Alvarez wound up crushing overmatched Josesito Lopez instead. And on Dec. 1, Alvarez was ringside to cheer on Miguel Cotto in his fight against Austin Trout; Alvarez knew he would probably face Cotto on Cinco De Mayo weekend if he won. However, Trout pulled the upset and likely wrecked Alvarez's megafight. Next time, stay home.
Next: TBA.




4. Miguel Cotto (37-4)

Folks from Golden Boy and Top Rank begged Cotto not to fight Austin Trout because of his slick, defensive style that was all wrong for Cotto. But Cotto, now his own promoter, didn't listen. He picked Trout and paid the price, losing a clear decision in a Dec. 1 title challenge in front of Cotto's fans at New York's Madison Square Garden. The loss probably ruined a planned May 4 mega showdown with Saul "Canelo" Alvarez.
Next: TBA.




5. Erislandy Lara (17-1-2)

In a bid to become the mandatory challenger for titleholder Saul "Canelo" Alvarez, Lara fought Vanes Martirosyan to a ninth-round technical draw on Nov. 10 in an HBO main event that turned out to be a terrible fight, mainly because Lara ran and would rarely engage. The fight ended when Martirosyan could not continue after an accidental head-butt opened a horrible cut in the ninth round, forcing the fight to the scorecards. Everybody please pray that a rematch is not inflicted upon us.
Next: TBA.




6. Vanes Martirosyan (32-0-1)

The most significant fight of Martirosyan's career, a title eliminator against Erislandy Lara for the right to become Saul "Canelo" Alvarez's mandatory challenger, ended in the bitter disappointment of a ninth-round technical draw on Nov. 10. Martirosyan suffered a severe cut over his left eye, forcing the fight to be stopped. Whether there is a rematch or not -- hopefully not -- Martirosyan will be out for a while due to the cut. It was a bad one.
Next: TBA.




7. Cornelius "K9" Bundrage (32-4)

In August 2010, Bundrage destroyed Cory Spinks in five one-sided rounds to win a title. Making his second defense June 30, Bundrage owned Spinks again, dropping him four times en route to a seventh-round knockout. Bundrage was a free agent going into the Spinks rematch after his contract with Don King expired, and he has signed with Golden Boy, with hopes it will set him up for a major fight in a packed division.
Next: TBA.




8. Carlos Molina (20-5-2)

Unable to find any top names to face him since dominating James Kirkland in March -- only to get disqualified on a terrible call -- Molina returned Aug. 17 to shut out Damian Frias on "Friday Night Fights." He'll be back on "FNF" once again in his next fight.
Next: Feb. 1 vs. TBA.




9. Gabriel Rosado (21-5)

On Sept. 21, Philadelphia's Rosado won his seventh fight in a row, a dominant, four-knockdown, 10th-round knockout of Charles Whittaker in the NBC Sports Network's "Fight Night" main event. The victory in the title eliminator makes Rosado the mandatory challenger for the belt held by Cornelius "K9" Bundrage, although Rosado instead opted for a bigger opportunity -- and a bigger purse -- to challenge middleweight titlist Gennady Golovkin (24-0) on HBO.
Next: Jan. 19 vs. Golovkin.




10. Zaurbek Baysangurov (28-1) Russia's Baysangurov made his second title defense Oct. 6, taking a bloody unanimous decision against interim titleholder Lukas Konecny in a rough, tough fight.
Next: TBA.

[Fibroso]

MIDDLEWEIGHTS (160 POUNDS)
1. Sergio Martinez (50-2-2)

http://espn.go.com/photo/2008/0821/box_sergio_martinez_65.jpg
Martinez retained the lineal championship and reclaimed his old alphabet title by taking Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. to school for 11-plus rounds of their much-anticipated showdown on Sept. 15, although Martinez had to survive a wild final 90 seconds in which he was almost knocked out. He had surgery Nov. 12 but should be fine for his spring homecoming fight in Argentina, where he will face England's Martin Murray before looking to a September rematch with Chavez.
Next: April 27 vs. Murray.




2. Daniel Geale (28-1)

Geale went to Germany on Sept. 1 and did something very, very hard to do: He won a split decision against hometown hero Felix Sturm to unify a pair of alphabet titles. After exploring possible fights in America, Geale will return home to Australia to seek revenge against countryman Anthony Mundine (44-4), who handed Geale his lone loss in 2009. However, Geale will be one belt lighter after he was stripped of one of them for not honoring a mandatory obligation to face Gennady Golovkin.
Next: Jan. 30 vs. Mundine.




3. Gennady Golovkin (24-0)

On Sept. 1, Golovkin was absolutely sensational in a fifth-round knockout of European champ and quality opponent Grzegorz Proksa to retain a belt. Golovkin scored three knockdowns in the victory and did what he said he wanted to do, which was to make a statement in his American and HBO debut. Golovkin, perhaps the most dangerous fighter in the weight class, returns to HBO to face junior middleweight contender Gabriel Rosado (21-5), who is actually bigger than him, at the Madison Square Garden Theater in New York on the network's first show of 2013.
Next: Jan. 19 vs. Rosado.




4. Felix Sturm (37-3-2)

Sturm fought a good fight against Daniel Geale on Sept. 1 and it could have gone either way, but -- shockingly -- Geale got the split decision win on Sturm's turf in Germany. And with it, Sturm's third title reign came to a screeching halt. Sturm will return against longtime contender Sam Soliman (42-11) of Australia, looking to get back on track.
Next: Feb. 2 vs. Soliman.




5. Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. (46-1-1)

Chavez, whose training habits left a lot to be desired as he prepped for his Sept. 15 fight with Sergio Martinez, started way too slowly and was outclassed for 11-plus rounds by the real champ. But Chavez salvaged some credibility with a blazing final 90 seconds in which he badly hurt and dropped Martinez. A rematch figured to take place in early 2013, but Chavez tested positive for marijuana after the fight and faces a lengthy suspension because it was his second positive test for a banned substance in Nevada since 2009. He's in trouble.
Next: TBA.




6. Matthew Macklin (29-4)

In March, Macklin, an England-born Irishman, dropped Sergio Martinez in a shot at the lineal championship before eventually going down twice in the 11th round and getting stopped. In his first fight since, Macklin was on the Martinez-Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. undercard on Sept. 15 and looked sensational as he blitzed former junior middleweight titlist Joachim Alcine for two knockdowns in the first-round stoppage. Ideally, Macklin will get a shot at the belts held by Daniel Geale or Gennady Golovkin. Those are perfect HBO fights.
Next: TBA.




7. "Kid Chocolate" Peter Quillin (28-0)

In an exciting action fight on Oct. 20 on the opening card at the Barclays Center in Quillin's adopted hometown of Brooklyn, N.Y., Quillin claimed a world title by outpointing Hassan N'Dam of France in a rough, physical fight. Although Quillin dropped N'Dam six times, this was no walk in the park because N'Dam dished out a lot of punishment, too. Quillin's first defense, possibly against faded former champ Jermain Taylor in a potential mismatch, will take place on Showtime at the Barclays Center on the Danny Garcia-Zab Judah undercard.
Next: Feb. 9 vs. TBA.




8. Dmitry Pirog (20-0)

Pirog, of Russia, was slated to fight in the United States and headline a Sept. 1 HBO card against titlist Gennady Golovkin. But Pirog ruptured a disc in his back and had to pull out of the fight. He will be out of commission for several months. To make matters worse, he was stripped of his alphabet belt for taking the Golovkin fight instead of taking a less lucrative mandatory defense.
Next: TBA.




9. Martin Murray (25-0-1)

Fighting Nov. 24 on the undercard of Ricky Hatton's failed comeback against Vyacheslav Senchenko, England's Murray dominated overmatched and unskilled Jorge Navarro, knocking him out in the sixth round to claim an interim trinket. Murray's next fight will take him to champion Sergio Martinez's home country of Argentina for the biggest fight of his life.
Next: April 27 vs. Martinez.




10. Andy Lee (28-2) Lee has been out of action since losing a world title shot to Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. on June 16. Lee was ahead 58-56 on all three scorecards going into the seventh round but was stopped. He is mourning the death of trainer and close friend Emanuel Steward, with whom he lived for the past few years in Detroit.
Next: TBA.